Skip counting

Counting faster

Skip counting means counting forward by the same amount each time, instead of one at a time. It’s much faster when things come in equal groups: pairs of socks, fingers on hands, coins.

The amount you add each time is called the step.

The most useful skip counts

Spot the pattern

Each skip count has a pattern you can use to check yourself:

• By 2s: the ones digits go 2, 4, 6, 8, 0 and repeat. These are the even numbers.
• By 5s: the ones digits go 5, 0, 5, 0.
• By 10s: the ones digit is always 0; the tens go up by 1.

The numbers you land on are called multiples. 15 is a multiple of 5 because you land on it counting by 5s.

Starting somewhere else

You can skip count from any number. Count by 10s from 7: 7, 17, 27, 37, 47. The ones digit stays 7. Count by 2s from 1: 1, 3, 5, 7, 9. These are the odd numbers.

Skip counting backwards

You can count down by steps too: 50, 45, 40, 35, 30. This prepares you for subtraction and division.

Where skip counting helps

• Money: counting nickels by 5s and dimes by 10s.
• Time: the minute hand moves in 5-minute jumps around the clock.
• Multiplication: 4 groups of 5 is 5, 10, 15, 20. So 4 × 5 = 20.

Worked examples

Example 1: Skip count by 5: 5, 10, 15, __

Add 5 to 15: 20.

Example 2: How many fingers on 6 hands?

Count by 5s six times: 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30.

Example 3: What comes next: 34, 44, 54, __?

The step is 10: 64.

Common mistakes

• Switching the step partway through, for example 5, 10, 15, 16.
• Losing count of how many jumps. Put up one finger for each jump.
• Not checking the pattern of ones digits.

Try it yourself

1. Count by 2s from 10 to 20.
2. Fill in: 25, 30, __, 40.
3. Count by 10s from 3 to 53.
4. Count back by 5s from 40 to 20.
5. How many socks are in 7 pairs?

Answers: 1) 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20 2) 35 3) 3, 13, 23, 33, 43, 53 4) 40, 35, 30, 25, 20 5) 14

Quick recap

• Skip counting adds the same step each time.
• Learn by 2s, by 5s and by 10s first.
• The ones-digit pattern helps you check.